It's been a little more than a year since the Korean dance artist Yaeji released her underscores/Aliyah’s Interlude collab "booboo2" and teamed up with Balming Tiger on two tracks. Today, Yaeji is back with the solo track "ddr," and the title stands for Dance Dance Revolution — both the Y2K-era video game and the concept of what an actual dance dance revolution might be.
"ddr" is a funky, skittering club track with Yaeji's signature deadpan vocals. She co-produced it with the help of New York underground figures Enayet and K Wata, and its frisky drum pattern is directly inspired by Chicago footwork. In the Giseong Jun-directed video, Yaeji follows a cool-looking stranger from the subway to what turns out to be an underground Dance Dance Revolution party. In the track's YouTube description, Yaeji has this to say:
i had this thought while out one night in nyc: if our current world is suffocating us then what does the reality we wanna see actually look like? maybe we’re actually experiencing a dance dance “revolution.” the miracle of all our bodies on the dancefloor in the same place at the same time. we’re making sure there’s water and choosing to protect each other so no one’s getting harassed, all while on our own introspective journeys soundtracked by the music. this one is for you. it’s also for me.
Check it out below.
"ddr" is out now on XL. Also, Yaeji will celebrate its release with a Dance Dance Revolution party this Friday, from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m., at the Brooklyn venue Paragon. In addition to the video game, it'll feature DJ sets from Yaeji, DJ Swisha, OSSX, Lil C, and DJ Noir. Sign up for tickets here.
